Zap of Cold Plasma Reduces Harmful Bacteria On Raw Chicken
safety researchers at Drexel University demonstrates that plasma can be an effective method for killing pathogens on uncooked poultry. The proof-of-concept study was published in the January issue of the Journal of Food Protection.
Although recent high-profile outbreaks of foodborne
illness have involved contaminated fresh produce, the most common source of harmful
bacteria in food is uncooked poultry and other meat products. The bacteria
responsible for most foodborne illnesses, Campylobacter and Salmonella, are
found on upwards of 70 percent of chicken meat tested.
Treating raw meat
products to remove pathogens before they reach a consumer's home can reduce the
risk of cross contamination during food preparation, according to senior author
Dr. Jennifer Quinlan, an assistant professor in Drexel's College of Nursing and
Health Professions. "If you could reduce contamination on the raw chicken,
then you wouldn't have it in the kitchen," Quinlan said.
Past studies have
shown that plasma could successfully reduce pathogens on the surface of fruits
and vegetables without cooking them.
The value of using
plasma "is that it is non-thermal, so there is no heat to cook or alter
the way the food looks," said lead author Brian Dirks, a graduate student
in the College of Arts and Sciences. Dirks and Quinlan worked with researchers
from the University's Anthony J. Drexel Plasma Institute to test the use of
plasma for poultry.
In the Drexel
study, raw chicken samples contaminated with Salmonella enterica and
Campylobacter jejuni bacteria were treated with plasma for varying periods of
time. Plasma treatment eliminated or nearly eliminated bacteria in low levels
from skinless chicken breast and chicken skin, and significantly reduced the
level of bacteria when contamination levels were high.
The researchers
also tested using plasma to treat samples of bacteria grown on agar, and
demonstrated that antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria were as susceptible
to plasma as the wild-type strains.
Plasma, known as
the "fourth state of matter" (after solid, liquid and gas), is a
high-energy, charged mixture of gaseous atoms, ions and electrons. Plasma has a
wide range of potential applications including energy production and control,
biomedical treatments and environmental remediation.
Quinlan described
the plasma treatment of poultry in this study as "proof of concept."
Current plasma technology is expensive relative to the narrow cost margins
involved in food production, and the technology is not currently being
developed for processing poultry on a large scale.
If plasma
technology becomes cost-effective for use in treating poultry, it may be used
in conjunction with existing methods to reduce pathogens, Dirks said, and it
may also help prolong the shelf-life of raw chicken if it can be honed to
remove more microorganisms responsible for spoilage.
"Until these
technologies are more fully developed, consumers should assume that raw poultry
has pathogens on it and take care to prevent infection," Quinlan said.
"That means cooking thoroughly and making sure not to cross contaminate
when handling uncooked meat and poultry."
Quinlan holds a a
Ph.D. in food microbiology from North Carolina State University and bachelor's
and master's degrees in food science from Rutgers University. Her research
focuses on the microbiological quality and safety of food. Her ongoing work
focuses on safe consumer handling of food.
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